Archive for the ‘On Being Moms’ Category

When we ran out of Moses Baskets, it made us sad when mommies asked about it and we couldn’t provide them any. For quite a time, we couldn’t get that good kind of organic material that would be best for baby. But after a long wait, our Moses Basket is back!

We used eyelette cotton linen for our first edition of Moses Basket in two shades, white and cream. This time, we added a little bit of twist on the fabrics. We use soft, textured cotton in organic colors to make it a bit modern. The inner-side of the basket is also lined with foam padding, plus, we add detachable sheer netting, like a mosquito net, for protection against bugs and insects (because these days a typical fever scares the life out of any mommy just thinking her child had caught the bad, bad dengue 😦 ).

And since the Ten Commandments were revealed to Moses, the Babinski Mamas will also reveal to all of you our Babinski Baby’s 10 Commandments of Baby Lovin’ – straight from our own personal experiences as mamas 🙂 Hope it helps you in some way…

Babinski Baby’s 10 Commandments of Baby Lovin’

1. Start the day by giving your baby a warm smile and a loving hug. This will help make him/her a happy baby.

2. Always touch your baby by rubbing his back, legs, arms and feet. This also promotes muscle development and blood circulation.

3. Talk to your baby everytime. You can even sing or read a book even if you think your baby doesn’t understand it yet. They’re attracted with happy and high-pitched voices.

4. Play soothing music when putting your baby to sleep and play happy music during play time. Babies love any kind of music and they get stimulated by it!

5. Bring the baby out to get some fresh air and sunshine. Walk around and show your baby the trees, birds and anything interesting in the neighborhood. Walking is also a good exercise for you.

A few weeks ago, Topaz Mommy gave birth to the healthiest and cutest baby boy in town!

I read her Facebook status a few days after giving birth and she seemed to be getting the baby blues. I knew exactly what she’s feeling. I felt it when I gave birth to my first. That having a newborn is not at all like a Johnson’s baby commercial where everything is painfully perfect. The long nine-month wait was nothing but smoke and mirrors! I felt betrayed.

Then with my second baby, I felt it again. I wrote an entry about it in November 2007:

I’m a brand-new mom all over again and I’m lacking confidence. Even the most mundane task like going to the grocery scares me. Where do I put the older child? In the main basket? If I do that where does the food go? It’s giving me a mild panic attack. Since we’re planning to have an eyebrow-raising four children, yes you heard me, it would really depend on, one, whether we could swing it financially, and two, my mental stability.

Speaking of mental stability I had post-partum with the Bear. I found the first 48 hours after giving birth pretty easy. But then reality hit me like a truck on the third day when I had enough strength to stand up after that painful operation for breastfeeding time. Frankly, there was no halleluiah moment, no chorus in the air when all the while I thought that upon seeing your newborn there would be angels with golden trumpets singing, “Hallelujah! Hallelujah… Hallelujah…” in the background. And when the nurse handed me the small Bear all 6.8 lbs. and led me to the breastfeeding room, a group of mothers were already there feeding their babies. I scanned the room wishing I had the corner area instead because I was struggling to do the cradle position with the small Maxiebear in my arms and didn’t want to make it too obvious, terrified that I might break her little bones. I wanted to cry. What have I gotten into? On the fourth day when bff Iya visited me in the house, I remember telling her, “Is this all there is to motherhood? Where has my life gone?” …To think I’ve only been a mother for 96 hours. But then you see, having our very first newborn became a milestone that fills me with great joy and once again makes me believe that, yes, there is a light at the end of the newborn tunnel.

The Painter’s Wife wrote a really nice feedback on her blog about our Receiving Blankets and Versavest Nursing Covers. Happiness!

We trust Babinski Mama Aimee for her super-eye when it comes to choosing fabrics for the nursing covers. As soon as she spots a design, it’s THE one. Here are the five new fabrics that we gathered for the Versavests. This week will be Paisleys and Cats…

Paisley - Pink

Paisley - Teal

These two have delicate designs in sheer fabric. It’s very soft and “flowy”. I really don’t know how to take a picture of these showing the translucent parts of the cloth. So behind it is a giant corrugated cardboard, a little bit near skin-color, to show its sheer-ness.

Paisley - Navy Blue

The Navy Blue has no sheer part. It is cottony soft. More for those who don’t like colors much. There are days that I don’t like colors, too. Remember, the rule less-is-more never goes wrong…

Cat - Baby Pink

Okay, so who wouldn’t die for a baby pink and gray leopard print? Even if I’m not breast feeding I still got one for myself. I match it with white, and looks good with denims, too! I love tying both ends on a knot. (Aimee taught me that.)

For a little trivia, the reason why we name our nursing covers, Versavest, is because of it’s versatility, how it is used as a breastfeeding cover and at the same time as a fashion piece. So it can still be functional whether you are not a mama milking cow anymore. 🙂

Cat -Silver

For me, when it comes to the design, this one is the most versatile of all, you can go casual or semi-formal with this gray on silver-gray cat print. Of course, the real breastfeeding mama Charlene couldn’t resist to get one.

There are two ways to wear our Versavest Nursing Cover. First is by wearing it the usual vest way then use one flap of the vest to cover you while baby is feeding. The flaps are wide enough. The second one is by wearing it in front, just like an apron. This is the traditional nursing cover way where the baby is under the cloth, totally covered. Since the vest is wide enough, plus the fabrics we use are light and soft, there is ventilation for baby. 🙂

It’s Linggo ng Wika! Today, Friday, Maxine was assigned to bring puto and Maia, pancit luglug for the Filipino Food. Last week I was calling up restos and shops inquiring who could deliver pancit luglug at 7am. The answer is NONE. The husband told me to better practice cooking while there’s still time, because like what he said, there’s no choice. Don’t wanna buy the night before either as this dish spoils easily. So we had pancit luglug and puto for Wednesday’s dinner. It was okay,though he said, “kulang sa kulay.” ‘Di ba pwedeng spaghetti nalang in UFC banana, sweet-blend sauce, fiesta-style sauce, name it, para pinoy parin? Wish.

So off I went to palengke in the middle of the pouring rain to buy bilao for my puto and pancit luglug, and for Maia’s embroidered organza which I matched with her pink plaid party dress so I wouldn’t have to buy an entire costume. Besides, there’s none in the world that would fit her! Talk about the palengke putik. The itty-bitty parking space. And the gloomy weather. Plus the countless ingredients for the luglug that I had to go back to the grocery three times because I forgot the chicharon, then the atsuete, then the puto molder. To think I already had a grocery list for ghadsakkkessssss. Then on my third trip just when I’ve completed the ingredients I found instant Palabok Mix (!). Got it for back-up just in case I get Murphy’s Law.
I complained. A little bit.

School is at 7:30 am so I woke up 5 in the morning to cook, hoping that the kids wouldn’t wake up yet because there would be a lot of Mommy-snuggle-with-me’s that would cause a riot between the two girls, they’d fight over which bed Mommy would stay in. I just couldn’t understand why little kids have sensors just as when you’re tip-toeing and trying not to make the slightest sound. As expected the tyrants woke up. “Mommy where are you?! MOMEEEEEE!!!” (100x). I bended the No TV Rule in the Morning just for today.

The four of us have been co-sleeping for half a decade, meaning, the husband & I have not been “alone” in bed since forever. During a parenting seminar, it was advised that it is about time to get the kids their own room, but in our case, their own beds, since we still live in a bachelor’s pad. So we went bed hunting with two major specifications in mind – it should be in dark wood and simple-cut, since our home is what I claim minimalist.

It has been three nights… They seem okay, though. Actually they were so excited to decorate the new beds with their, according to Max, “precious stuff.”

Lo and behold, guess who couldn’t sleep peacefully?

Yup, me.

I’ve been going to sleep for nights biting my cheek, pretending not to feel that they’re growing.

Chloe means young green shoot; blooming. She is blooming alright. The moment Jeff and I first laid our eyes on her, without a trace of favoritism, she is the prettiest. The twenty-hour labor pains were nothing. The blood pressure that shot up to 200 that made the whole delivery room panic became plain. She is my blooming flower.

Chloe is also a Greek earth goddess. No wonder the heavenly bodies were in favor of this baby, since I gave birth to her during the Moon and Venus eclipse – Venus, the goddess of love and beauty. Because you are dearly loved my beautiful one.

I wanted a name from the Bible. As I’ve searched, your name was mentioned in 1 Corinthians 1:11. No further meaning to me whatsoever. But what is amazing is that your name lives through ages.

…And Chloe is a fashion line. That I don’t intend to buy for myself. I don’t need it. I still have a lot of priorities. You, for one. Mommy is last; I don’t mind a single bit. …And I already have everything. Really.

Maxine is very comfortable visiting the dentist since she had a very pleasant first-time when she was two something; she’s four now. So for their annual check-up, we brought two year old Maia along for her very first. The night before I read her a book, A Visit to the Dentist, and briefed her of what was going to happen…

“Maia, we’re gonna visit a friend, Tito Jay. He will check your teeth with a tiny mirror and count them like this…”

“No. Mama o-yee.” It means, Mama only is allowed to touch her teeth.

“…He’ll remove the icky worms stuck on your teeth if there’s any… And he’ll give you a nice balloon!”

“No! Mama O-YEEEE!!!”

So the next day, Max had cleaning, had a hole filled behind her two front teeth and sealants placed on her molars, as easy as a pie!

But with Maia, it was not at all pleasant. The moment she saw the dentist on a surgical cap, she hid behind her Daddy and has gone haywire. Argh! Scaredy-cat! Why is she so much like me?

Dr. Jay explained Maia’s behavior as a Fear of the Unknown. Children usually wonder why they have to visit the dentist, since it does not happen usually. It’s just a matter of being familiar to the unfamiliar.

No pictures happened during her first dental check-up 😦 as her Dad and I were both with her *eyeroll*. She got her balloon though.

Babinski Mama Mae

Facade of Tooth Fairy Dental Clinic

P.S.
Dr. Jay is very good with handling children. I found his info from a parenting forum when I was desperately looking for a pedia dentist, and all the moms were raving about him (he is not a pedia dent but he has learned how to handle children based on experiences). I chose him because he doesn’t need to use general anesthesia to keep kids still unlike other pedia dent I inquired about. He uses psychological method like making kids touch the tools, explaining patiently with analogy what each tool is for, etc… :-). On our first visit, there was a four year old girl who just had two bad, rotting molars surgically removed, without a fuss! Her mom also found out about the clinic from a forum. For those who are interested, here’s the address:
Tooth Fairy Dental Clinic
1091-A Tablante Bldg., Rodriguez St., Bangkal, Makati City
Contact Numbers (02)4587232, (02)4820887, (63)922.6905276
A little bit of warning to the moms: I always need someone to drive me there. I’m poor with obeying one-way signs and parallel-parking in eskinitas.

It was Expo Mom yesterday, the event that the Babinski Mamas look forward to every year. (But it was only me and Aimee who were there, because, guess what. Charlene gave birth to Chloe, the newest Babinski baby in town!) The Market was a blast! Janice and Rome of Mommy Mundo made it a success. Mommies really showed their thing back there. Mompreneurs rule the world!

Mompreneurs, as I put it, and as I describe what the three of us do, are stay-at-home moms who establish business at home so that they can help with the income and at the same time be hands-on to their children. They usually invent, innovate or improve products that they think would be beneficial to their co-mommies :-).

We launched our new 2-way Nursing Vest there, and it was all sold out even before we put it up in the website. It is really good and surprising to know that there are so many moms right now who believe in breastfeeding. The benefits of it!

For those who are still breastfeeding, don’t give up early. Do it as long as you can carry on. Personally I did get bouts of frustration when the hungry baby would start to look for me when I would be feeling like I wanted and NEEDED me-time. I was dehydrated. Had a hard time drinking and eating enough. Was down to 80 something pounds. Didn’t sleep much. Lost a tooth for every child. Plus I was emotionally drained and felt socially out of contact with the entire planet. And talk about the baby tooth! Heyyy, that’s a mean little bite! Okay baby, I’ll give it two years then we’re done, get it? As I’ve always said, having a newborn baby is not at all like a Johnson’s baby commercial where everything looks dreamy and powder-scented. Reality (literally) bites!

Aimee has Vitor breastfeeding for one and a half years now while Charlene is just starting all over again. My dear bunso, Maia, who is now two and a half, has decided to call it quits with me. After those two grueling but essential years…

For the breastfeeding mom, try our Babi Nursing Pillow. It puts the nursing mom’s body into an ergonomically correct position to prevent backaches. Plus, the Babi can be a helpful tool to support your baby’s upper body to prepare him for the crawling stage and support baby’s back to help him practice how to sit.

It’s that non-verbal gesture that kills it. Furthermore, I gasp. To think this lady is not even wearing bras yet.

“I said you will not leave this room until you’ve taken a shower!”

Eye roll. Her think bubble says, “You’re so annoying…”

Didn’t I just make a very reasonable request?

“I don’t like those rolling eyes, it’s disrespectful. I would have to leave this room because I don’t want to be with anyone who rolls their eyes…”

It’s a silent war between 4 vs 33. I just figured I spoke a few hundred words and she zero. zip. zilch. and I am THIS close to blowing up. I win. She loses. Or she wins? I lose? I wish I never rolled my eyes at my mom.

Happy Mother’s Day to all patient and hardworking moms out there. Just reminding that you have the toughest job on earth.